The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1887-05-29
N00NAN'S QUEER TACTICS.
WY HE WIS HIRED BIZ THE SCHOOL
FUND AND VA DISMISSED.

1
! Usurpfng the Functions of the state
Treasurer and Collecting the States
Moneys Without AuthoriIy-Iuforma
ton this Finance Board Desires.
Members of the Board of Finance have
been engaged for the last week or two in
making an ing 1iry into the record made by
Assemblyman Thomas F. Noonan as Attor-
ney for the State School Fund. The fact
that he had been appointed to look after
the property of the School Fund was
| chronicled in the SUNDAY MORNING News
during the sitting of the Legislature. The
fact that he had been removed from the
position was reported in the SUNDAY MORN
ING News two weeks or so later. Mr.. Moo
nan is, with Assemblyman Robert g. Huds-
peth.a candidate for the position of Corpo-
ration Attorney here, which ex Justice
| Roderic B. Seymour is to vacate on July /,
and the enquiries made by the members of
| the Board OF Finance as to the reasons for
Mr.. Noonan's sudden dismissal from the
States service are due to desire on their
part to know whether he is
| the right man to ill the
soon-to- become-ylcant city office. A
SUNDAY MORNING News reporter, having
learned of these inquiries, nosed out the
story Of Mr.. Noonan's connection with
the State Fund Commissioners yesterday,
and deems it of enough interest to lay it
before the public.
Last winter State Treasurer Toffey in
/ formed the Commissioners of the Fund ia
| Trenton that the property of the Fund
needed looking after. | was necessary
that the realty held by it should be kept in
good order; that delinquent debtors
shoulF be brought to settlements. and that
other tile details 10 which he could not
give IS perser,l attention should be
| look9 stsr. The Commissioners saw the
wisd8 of the complaint, and decided to
appQFst man to fill the breach. Assembly
man 4soonan was chosen. Almost the first
thing he did was to send a pretentiously
worded document to every debtor and other
| person having any business whatsoever
| with the fund 1t announced that he had
been appointed Attorney BY the Commits.
| sioners. and directed that thereafter all
moneys due the fund be sent to HIM. The
/ State Treasurer is ex-offici0, the Treasurer
of the Fund. He is under heavy bonds to
the State for the faithful care of State
funds, and no one had any idea that the
newly appointed Attorney had arrogated
/ to himself the functions of the Treasurer.
It was not lorg, however, before they
found it out. The State Treasurer receiver
letters after little time from many of the
/ debtors of the Fund, enquiring whether
Mr., Noonan had authority to collect the
| the States moneys or not; and some ask
ingnow and why the chapgs in the course
! OF 1siness had been made. Colonel
roffey made enquiry OF MIR. Noonan
and leaned what he had done, and
then gave him good talking to for having
transcribed his authority. The distribution
! of Mr. Noonans circular made it necessary
| for the State Treasurer to counterfeit i,
and he had number of circulars printed
and sent out to those having business with
the Fund, directing them to pay no heed to
Mr.. Noonans circular, and to continue to
make their payments to the State Treasurer
as they had been doing. TAe matter was
brought to the notice of the Com missioners
of the Fund, and Mr. Noonan was at once
removed from his position.
| 1t is said that when an explana ton was
demanded of Mr.. Noonan he replied that
he wanted to do as much work for the
Fund as he could, both by wsy of making
himself useful to the Commissioners, and
in the hope of securing as large salary as
possible.
The reporter was informed that
before his circular had been seen
| by the State Treasurer, and even
afterwards. from people who could not I'M
derstand the apparent CLASH of circulars,
Mr.. Noonan received several thousand
dollars of money belonging to the State.
The reporter was dispatched to Col. To-
feys house, in Magnolia avanue, to make
enquiry on this point last evening. The
State Treasurer wac very reluctant to talk
about the matter but he was finally in
duced to say little.
Mr.. Noonan," he said, 'sacted with
very poor Judgment in the premises but
l guess his intentions were all right, and /
have no reason to believe that the State
has lost cent by his error"
" Has he collected any money due the
State p asked the reporter.
"Yes. He collected about three thousand
dollars as far as have been able to learn.
He turned the money into his own bank
account, but has since paid it over to me,
/ have not heard from all of the persons
having dealings with the Fund. There are
aboat five hundred of them altogether. So
far as 1 have heard from them their ac-
counts agree to penny with the report
Mr.. Noonan has submitted to me-"
Col William B. McMichael, of Borden
town. has just been appointed by the Com
/ slOners to sueceed Mr. Nnonap